Butterfly
by CatStar
Summary: This is the sequel/prologue (o.o;..??) to Butterfly*~ Music of the Heart. Taichi and Sora are just friends... right? Taichi needs money for Sora's b-day gift... right? Taichi will NEVER use Sora in a BET to EARN money for the gift... right? Read and f
1. The Bet

**Disclaimer:** Nope, u may not bow down to worship me becoz unfortunately, I don't own Digimon ;.;  
  
**A/N: **Okay, Sora and Taichi are 15 in this fic. Correct me if I'm wrong, but according to the Japanese, u're in Junior High if u're 15, right? And when u're 16, u're in High School? Another thing, I know I don't have yen in here when I'm talking about money. I don't know how to convert ^.^;   
  
**A/N 2: **This fic is the prologue/sequel (whatever u wanna call it; it's supposed to take place BEFORE, but I wrote it AFTER o.o;) to my Taiora, "Butterfly*~ Music of the Heart." Yes, the whole point in this is to make Taichi a jerk at first, so don't flame me becoz of that. Besides, if u read my last fic, u know that everything will turn out fine. So please, dont bug me about how Taichi's acting so jerk-ish in this fic. Arigatou gozaimasu ^.^  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Sora Takenouchi opened the school doors and into the bright, sunny afternoon. The fresh late summer breeze of Odaiba blew softly against her face. She had just finished her first day of school, and was going to walk to her tennis practice. Walking down the street, and practicing swinging her tennis racket, she heard a voice call her name.  
  
"Sora! Wait up!"  
  
She whirled around. Tall, brown-haired Taichi Yagami was running towards her, carrying his school bag on his back, and holding a soccer ball with his hands. He dropped the ball, but before it hit the ground, he kicked it sharply towards the girl. Even though she had quit the soccer team, and taken up tennis instead, she still had a passion for the sport. The ball was flying at her, as she kicked her right leg out to the side, and stopped the ball. It bounced to the ground in defeat, as her foot covered the ball, not wanting it to go anywhere.  
  
"Nice block," Tai commented, as he caught up to her  
  
Sora kicked the ball up to him, and he caught it. "Thanks," she said, grinning.   
"I've still got it, huh?"  
  
"Yeah, it's too bad you're too busy with tennis. We could still use you on the  
team." They started walking down the street, and towards the soccer field.  
  
"And not only that, but I have to help my mom with the flower shop," Sora added, looking at her watch. "Oh, sorry Tai, but I have to be at tennis in a couple of minutes."  
"Well, a bunch of us are playing soccer," Tai said. As Sora could see, a whole  
bunch of Taichi's friends were already gathering up at the soccer field. "You can watch us if ya want."  
  
Sora shook her head. "No thanks. Maybe some other time. I have to get to my  
lesson." She started walking away.  
  
"Oh. Okay." She could hear slight disappointment in his voice. "I guess I'll just  
see you later then."  
  
She turned around. "Okay, bye!" she called out. She really regretted missing him play soccer. Especially since she's had a little crush on him lately. She's tried to make it go away, but her heart just wouldn't listen to her. She looked back at the field. _Oh, why not? _ she thought. _I'll just watch for a couple of minutes. Just don't be so late.  
_  
Sora ran back to the field, and sat herself down on the bleachers. There were five people on each team. The game had just started, and the other team had the ball. Taichi sneaked up behind one of them, and stole the ball on the side. Sora was surprised that she wasn't really paying attention to the game, but to Taichi. His wavy brown hair, blowing in the wind, and the cute look of concentration on his face. _ He's just so cute when he's like that..._she thought. _But....there's nothing I can do, is there? We're just friends....I've got to stop liking him....It's disgusting to like you're own friend...  
_  
She got up, and jumped off the bleachers, not wanting to miss her tennis lesson.   
She ran into the sidewalk, trying to get Taichi out of her mind. "He's just your friend, he's just your friend..." she kept muttering to herself, as she ran the block. "He's your best friend, that's all he'll ever be....But...he's just so cute!" Sora stopped suddenly to catch her breath. She shook her head and twirled the tennis racket in her hands, gripping it tightly.  
  
"Get a hold of yourself, Takenouchi," she muttered to herself. "Taichi is just a  
friend. Get used to it." As soon as she regained control of her emotions, she walked the rest of the way to her tennis lesson.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
_Sora?_ Taichi thought worriedly as he saw her jump down from the bleachers and run out of his sight. He was really happy when he saw that she was staying to watch some of the game, but it had only been about two minutes and she was leaving already.  
  
_Thunk! _ "What the...?!"  
  
There was laughter in the field as his friends looked at the clueless look on Taichi's face. "Pay attention, Yagami!" one of them, Shigeru said, picking up the soccer ball that hit Taichi's head.  
  
He blinked. "Uh, yeah, whatever," he muttered. "Guess I just blanked out..."   
This was true. It wasn't just Sora on his mind, but a birthday present that he  
should give to her. Just a month ago, he saw the greatest gift he could give her at the mall: a gold butterfly-shaped locket with her name engraved on it. But the price was the problem. He winced as he remembered asking the employee how much it was, and getting an answer.  
  
"How much is it?" he had asked.  
  
"Five-hundred," she had replied.  
  
_You've got to be kidding me, _he thought. _Maybe I got a lucky break and it's  
really five hundred pennies...  
_  
Unfortunately, wishful thinking didn't help the 15-year-old boy. He had saved up four-hundred fifty in the past month, but he was still short. _ Just fifty more to go... _He thought, and sighed, looking defeated.  
  
"You blanked out, huh?" Shigeru said, punching Taichi lightly on the arm. "Yeah, I'd say you blanked out. Lookin' at Takenouchi-chan over there, you love-sick puppy."  
  
Taichi rolled his eyes, but he couldn't hide the redness that was taking over his  
face. "Yeah, right. Sora and I are just friends. We go way back," he added. This was true. The kind of feelings he felt for Sora were just warm, friendly feeling, the kinds of feelings he usually felt for his younger sister, Hikari.  
  
Shigeru just shook his head. "Well, you could've fooled me. You two are  
together so much, you'd think you were surgically attached to her."  
  
"Ha-ha," Taichi retorted, and kicked the soccer ball that was by his feet. This got the game started again, and for the next hour, Taichi's passion for the sport was the only thing he had on his mind.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Okay, Sora! I'll see you later!" Taichi called out to her the next day. It was after school, and again, the two were going their separate ways. Taichi was going to soccer practice, while Sora was going to tennis practice.  
  
She stuck out her tongue. "Not if I see you first!"  
  
Taichi laughed. "Bye!"  
  
Sora gave one of her award-winning smiles. "See ya!" she called out, and jogged  
ahead.  
  
Taichi smiled right after her. He cared about her so much, and they've been  
through so much together. They were almost like family. Ever since that incident with Datamon back when they were eleven, he vowed to himself that he'd take care and watch over everyone in the group- especially Sora, since he'd almost lost her.   
  
"You sure you don't want to go out with her?" a voice said, interrupting his  
thoughts.  
  
Taichi spun around, and saw Shigeru and another guy from his soccer team, Li.   
Yamato and Koushiro were right behind them, black eyes and blue eyes gleaming with curiosity.  
  
"Go out with who?" Yamato asked, shifting the guitar case he had held onto his  
other hand. The five of them started walking down the steps of the school.  
  
"Sora Takenouchi," Li told him, grinning, walking backwards to face them. "Our  
boy Tai here is practically in love with her."  
  
"Am not," Taichi retorted. "We're just friends. Nothing more. We go way back,  
right, Koushiro? Yamato?"  
  
They both nodded. "Believe me, Taichi and Sora don't mix together," Koushiro  
replied to Li and Shigeru. "They're just friends, and that's all they ever were."  
  
"They're just friends," mimicked Shigeru. He rolled his eyes. "You're starting to sound like Taichi, Izumi."  
  
"Well, it's true," Yamato shot back. He said this to cover up his friend. He  
thought something was going on between Taichi and Sora for the last couple of months, but he didn't want to say anything. Both of them had made it clear that they were just friends, so he didn't want to get into an argument about them liking each other again.  
  
"Fine. Be that way," Shigeru said, kicking a lone soccer ball that was sitting on  
the grass in front of the Junior High. Then, he turned back around, his brown eyes  
sparkling with a new idea. "Hey Taichi..." he said slowly. "How about a bet?"  
  
Taichi narrowed his own brown eyes. "What kind of bet?"  
  
"Ask Sora out and last it for like.... umm... say about a week. If you do it, I'll give you fifty bucks."  
  
Taichi froze. _Fifty? Fifty dollars?_ It was all he needed for his birthday present to Sora! Sora's birthday was just at the end of the month, and he didn't know what to do to pay for the great necklace he saw. The necklace was on hold at the store for him, but he knew that if he didn't got back to buy it soon, they might take it off.  
  
"Taichi," Koushiro said in a low voice. "You're not going to do it... right? I  
mean... think of what would happen if it got too far..."  
  
"That's too far, Taichi," Yamato told him. "You can't risk your friendship like  
this. It's just not... right."  
  
_They're right. But, what should I do? _Taichi thought, looking troubled. _I can't  
ask Sora out... But I need the money... Asking Sora out- even for a week- was something big. _ She wouldn't know about the bet, the money, about anything. _I can't bear to hurt her feelings, even if it is a week... _he told himself inwardly. _But... I can make it up to her when I get her the birthday present...  
_  
It was just for a week. They were close friends. If he told her what had happened when he gave her his present, he might forgive her. They would laugh about it. Sora would exclaim how beautiful her butterfly necklace was. And she would forgive him.  
  
"Well? What will it be?" Li asked him, observing him closely.  
  
Taichi took a deep breath. "When do I ask her out?"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Well, part one's done. If I don't get at LEAST 10 reviews, I will not put up another part and delete this. Ja ne! ^.^  
  
**Another A/N: ** Also, I will not accept any crap saying that Taichi's last name is Kamiya, not Yagami. Kamiya is his ENGLISH name. When I use English names (which I rarely do) I will use Kamiya, but I dont mix a Jpn. first name & an English last name. Tai Kamiya, Yagami Taichi. Tai Kamiya, Yagami Taichi. See the diff? ^.^  
  
  



	2. Just Friends...?

"You can do it right this minute," Shigeru said, as the five of them turned the  
corner of the street. Cars zoomed by; people walked down the sidewalk, exercising  
themselves or their dogs; children ran down the street in a game of street tag. All of the sounds of the city surrounded Taichi, but he could only think of what would happen to Sora.  
  
He closed his eyes, careful not to wince at the thought. _ I can't go out with Sora. She's my friend. My best friend. That's all she ever is, and that's all she ever will be. That's all I want... _he opened his eyes. _But....  
_  
Taichi had a flashback. In his head, was the vivid image of the time in the  
Digiworld where Sora had been captured by Datamon. He had taken her away. Taichi tried to get to her, but his own cowardliness had stopped him from doing it. It was the force field. He didn't know it could do as much harm to him in the real world as is would do in the Digital World. _ I just stared at it.... And while I stared, Datamon took her away..._ He squeezed his eyes shut again.  
  
_I need to get her that birthday present... that butterfly,_ he thought, half-listening to Yamato tell Koushiro, Shigeru, Li, and him about his upcoming gig. _I have to show her how much her friendship means to me, and that I'll always be there for her. Just friends. Nothing more. _ Taichi then felt a warm feeling flood over his heart as he thought about the word. Friends. _If we break up.... _he amended what he thought. When _we break up, we can still be friends. Nothing can change that.  
_  
"So, I look in my gym bag, and my soccer ball is deflated!" Li said, making  
everyone laugh. Taichi managed a half-hearted smile, even though he had been lost in his own thoughts. He had no idea what they were talking about.  
  
"Well, there she is," Shigeru finally said, suddenly stopping. They were at the  
tennis courts where Sora was having her practice. The small, yellow tennis ball bounced back and forth between her and one of her tennis friends. Sora showed the power in her arms as she whacked the ball, sending it to fly over the net. Her friend showed equal strength. The guys waited patiently until their practice game was over.  
  
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Shigeru asked Taichi when Sora finally stopped to get a break. She jogged over to a bench, little beads of sweat forming at her forehead, and took a long sip of water. Shigeru gave him a little push.  
  
Yamato grabbed Taichi by the sleeve. "Taichi! Are you crazy?" he hissed. "You  
can't use her for money like this!"  
  
"Come on, Taichi," Koushiro said, giving him a long stare. "Let's just get out of  
here."  
  
_Of course, they wouldn't know,_ Taichi finally realized. They didn't know about  
the gift he had seen for Sora. He didn't tell them about it. He already knew that all of his friends had bought her a present already. He was the only one left. For some reason, he really wanted the butterfly necklace for her. A sense of power was drawing him to it. And he really wanted it.  
  
Gently, he pulled his arm away from Yamato, and walked toward Sora. the four  
other guys walked away to wait outside of the courts. But something was wrong. Taichi glanced down at his hands. They were shaking.  
  
Sora glanced up from the bench, her water bottle in her hand. She smiled. "Hi,  
Taichi!" she greeted him.  
  
He managed to grin back. "Hey, Sora."  
  
He walked over to her and sat down, noticing the bright gleam of her crimson  
eyes. It was the exact color of her Crest of Love. He tried not to wince. _ I'm being  
anything but lovable now..._  
  
"So, what brings you here?" she asked, taking a sip of water.  
  
"Oh, n-nothing. Nothing much. Nope. Nothin' much goin' on with me today," he  
stammered while absentmindedly cracking his knuckles. "Just wanted to see you play, that's all. You know, since you stayed for a couple of minutes to watch my practice yesterday."  
  
"Oh, cool," Sora replied. "Thanks! Um, well, anyway, I gotta get to practice  
now, so I have to go." She started to stand up when Taichi noticed Li's head pop from the side of the entrance to the courts. His facial expression immediately asked Taichi if he asked Sora yet. Taichi was about to forget the whole thing and walk away, but the flash of money entered his head. And with the money was a necklace.  
  
"Wait! Sora?"   
  
She turned around.  
  
"Um... Do you.... Do you want to go to a movie or something on Saturday? Like,  
and maybe, like, um, somewhere to eat afterward?" Taichi asked, sounding nervous. He figured nervous was good. He needed to sound nervous; exactly what a normal boy would act like when asking a girl out on a date.  
  
Sora nodded. "Sure. Who else is coming? Yamato? Mimi? Hikari, maybe? Or  
the whole gang?"  
  
_YES!_ Taichi wanted to scream. _Yes, everyone else is coming. Yup, yup! Yamato, Mimi, Hikari, Takeru, Daisuke, Miyako, Iori, Jyou, Koushiro, Ken, the whole Chosen Children gang. Yup, yup! All of us! It's not going to be a date, just a get together! Yup, yup!  
_  
But Taichi knew that he needed the money. He also knew that if he said that, then he'd be acting like Piximon.  
  
"Well...well, no one," Taichi replied, shifting from one foot to another. "Just like, the two of us. Out on a sorta-date. Not really a date, just a sorta-date. Just a..... kinda-sorta outing with just me and you."  
  
Sora blinked. She wanted to smile, but she knew she had to keep a straight face. "Sure!" she replied casually. _ Taichi.... asked me out? He likes me?  
_  
"Great," Taichi said, taking fast steps backwards, facing her. "Well, um, I'll see you tomorrow?"  
  
"Yup, I got to get back now, Taichi. Bye!"  
  
"Bye Sora." With that, he turned around and raced to the entrance of the courts where his friends were waiting.  
  
"So, did you do it?" Koushiro asked as Taichi leaned against the wall to breathe  
for a moment.  
  
"Yes.... I did it.... We're going to a movie on Saturday. Maybe somewhere to eat  
afterwards." He took a deep breath. "You so totally owe me, Shigeru and Li. I don't want my best friend as my girlfriend. We're_ friends_."  
  
Shigeru nodded. "We'll pay you after the week is over. Next Saturday. Then, the money is yours."  
  
Taichi knew he should've been happy because of the butterfly necklace. But he  
didn't. Instead, he felt completely empty.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
**A/N: **Piximon is kawaii, ne? ^.^  
  
**A/N again: **Yes, I know this chapter is short. The next one will be longer o.o;


End file.
